Royston Golf Club round-up

ROYSTON Golf Club captain David Crossley led his team to victory in their annual match against Cambridge University’s Stymies team.

The history of this event started with the first match between the two clubs on the January 26, 1893, just one year after the laying out of the Royston course in 1892. Prior to 1892 residents had played golf on Therfield Heath without a course layout.

This year’s match was, as normal, played over 36 holes with foursome games in the morning and singles games in the afternoon. The final result of this year’s match was a win for the Royston team by 13 games to 2.

The Stymies Team are all single to mid handicap players and they are open to all undergraduate and postgraduate Cambridge University students including students from abroad.

A ‘stymie’, according to the original pre-1952 rules of golf, was a situation where your opponent’s ball lay on the green between your ball and the hole and more than six inches from your ball. Under the rules then applicable, you could not ask for the ball to be marked and lifted, you had to putt around or chip over the opposing ball, as that ball stymied (or snookered) your ball.

Meanwhile, at Royston, Jane Millership continued her run of success with a win in the Ladies’ February Stableford with 35 points, closely followed by Jenny Jarvis, Sandra Williams, Josie Seward, Libby Toby, Evelyn Fenton, Sandra Joiner, Sheila Wood, Val Squires, Joan Buckerfield and Marjory Humphreys.

In the Senior Section Stableford, Mike Taylor led home a field of 29 players. He finished with 35 points and a handicap cut, ahead of Michael Harrison on 33 and single-handicapper Ian Gavine on 32 points. Peter Mitchel came fourth with 31 points, while John Murray and Bob Lee finished joint fifth with 29 points.

The Saturday Stableford was won by David Sharman with 39 points, closely followed by Paul Thomson, Peter Prentice and Charles Fiddler ahead of a field of 31 players.

In the Sunday Fourball Betterball competition, Dave Shaw and Dave Millership stormed home with 44 points – one point ahead of pair Mark Pearson and Eric Baker on 43. Jason Nolan and Stuart Hunt finished third with 41 points followed by 70 other competitors.